12 euros per ticket

State Leaders Send Air Travel Tax into a Tailspin

In a rather unusual alliance, the ÖVP governor of Lower Austria and Vienna’s SPÖ mayor, Michael Ludwig, are declaring war on the ticket tax.(Bild: Krone-Collage/APA/MAX SLOVENCIK, APA/GEORG HOCHMUTH)

The call for help from Schwechat is having an effect: After airport CEO Günther Ofner called for the abolition of the ticket tax, the two most powerful state leaders in the east are now openly in favor of exactly that. Vienna Mayor Michael Ludwig (SPÖ) and Lower Austria Governor Johanna Mikl-Leitner (ÖVP) are questioning the flight tax.

It was a wake-up call that Günther Ofner issued last week on “ZiB 2”: Passengers are fleeing Vienna International Airport. From January through August, passenger volume at Schwechat fell by 4 percent to 20.57 million travelers, with a 6.9 percent drop in August alone. For the year as a whole, the airport expects about two million fewer passengers. Ofner has identified the main culprit behind the economic turmoil: the ticket tax of 12 euros per flight—and as much as 30 euros for short-haul flights of up to 350 kilometers.

In Bratislava, just 55 kilometers away, the costs are one-third lower—and low-cost carriers are acting accordingly. Wizz Air has already turned its back on Vienna, and Ryanair has moved its aircraft across the border. Slovakia is one of 19 EU countries that do not levy any comparable tax. Ofner argues that the tax has no steering effect on climate policy. As reported, it merely results in a “shift” to Bratislava.

“It’s legitimate to rethink the flight tax”
And this is also a topic of discussion at Vienna City Hall. “Vienna thrives on its international accessibility,” says Ludwig. Good air connections secure jobs, tourism, and the economy. If traffic shifts to neighboring regions, the city loses economic value, employment, “and ultimately revenue as well.” The mayor emphasizes that government revenue is important. But: If a tax misses its mark and does more harm than good, “then it is legitimate and reasonable to reconsider it.” The air travel tax should undergo an “honest evaluation”—with the goal of strengthening Vienna’s position in European competition.

It is important to abolish the flight tax altogether. Because this tax weakens the region as a business location and destroys jobs

Johanna Mikl-Leitner, Landeshauptfrau in Niederösterreich

Johanna Mikl-Leitner is even more explicit in an interview with the “NÖ-Krone.” While she praises the government’s fuel price cap and industrial electricity rates, “we need to take even more action.” With regard to Schwechat, she says it is important “to abolish the flight tax altogether. “This tax weakens the region as a business hub and destroys jobs.” It does nothing to help the environment, “because passengers will then fly out of Bratislava instead of Schwechat.” The governor is convinced that the lost revenue would be offset by an increase in tourism.

For the government, this headwind from within its own ranks comes at an inopportune time. Peter Hanke’s (SPÖ) Ministry of Infrastructure had most recently pledged 30 million euros per year in crisis aid to the aviation sector from the 2027/28 biennial budget—according to the airport, too little to offset the decline in passenger numbers. Abolishing the ticket tax, on the other hand, would tear a hole in the already strained budget.